When healthcare consumers are confronted with a new health condition, they frequently have difficulty understanding what treatments to expect, what healthcare costs to expect, what healthcare provider choices they may have, and what treatments are covered under their health plan. An individual receiving a new diagnosis may be uncertain as to what they can expect both from a treatment and financial standpoint.
In addition, when a healthcare consumer is facing a single treatment or treatment regimen that requires more than a simple office visit, often the healthcare consumer's primary care physician makes healthcare choices for the consumer based on professional relationships the physician has with facilities (e.g., hospitals) and colleagues. This selection process does not give the healthcare consumer visibility into options he or she may have regarding the selection of healthcare providers and further does not give the consumer the opportunity to perform healthcare provider comparisons.
Further, healthcare providers may not advertise the costs of their services (e.g., the cost of a visit or a treatment). This may make it difficult for healthcare consumers to understand treatment costs, which may be particularly important for healthcare consumers that do not have health insurance.
Generally speaking, healthcare consumers rarely have a good understanding of healthcare options and treatment costs prior to undergoing treatment.